When Could the Fortnite App Come Back? What We Know After Apple iOS ‘Block’

Fortnite’s disappearance from Apple’s iOS platforms has reignited a long-standing conflict between Fortnite’s video game creator Epic Games and tech giant Apple, leaving many mobile gamers without access to the popular game and raising fresh questions about when—or if—it will return to iPhones.

What We Know

Fortnite maker Epic Games on May 16 said that Apple blocked the game’s return to iOS.

“Apple has blocked our Fortnite submission so we cannot release to the US App Store or to the Epic Games Store for iOS in the European Union,” the company said on an official X account, formerly Twitter. “Now, sadly, Fortnite on iOS will be offline worldwide until Apple unblocks it.”

Epic Games was founded in 1991 by CEO Tim Sweeney. It manages over 800 million player accounts, according to its website, and operates one of the most popular video games, Fortnite.

Epic Games resubmitted the app this month, as well as it’s Epic Games Store app, to Apple for notarization. Apps are required to be notarized before they can be distributed outside of the App Store for security purposes, since 2019.

But the submission, Epic claimed, was blocked, making it unavailable to Apple users in the United States and the European Union.

Epic accused Apple of monopolistic behavior in a 2021 case related to the tight controls it imposes over app makers.

According to The Verge, it’s the most recent spat in a long legal battle between the two entities tied to Apple’s control of the App Store and in-app purchase rules. In August 2020, Epic Games sued Apple related to it’s app store practices.

Fortnite was banned from the Apple App Store in 2020, but was allowed back last year, according to Reuters, following pressure from European Union authorities to be sure it aligned with the Digital Markets Act, an EU regulation aimed at making the digital economy fair.

In April, a judge in the Epic v. Apple case ruled that Apple is no longer permitted to collect fees on purchases made outside apps. The company was blocked from controlling how developers can direct users to where they can make purchases outside of apps. Apple says it will appeal the order.

Did Apple Block Fortnite?

At this time, Fortnite is currently not available for download in the U.S. on the Apple App Store. Epic Games says that Apple blocked the app.

When Fortnite Mobile Could Come Back

Fortnite’s return to iOS is contingent on either a policy shift from Apple, or if Apple is compelled by regulators, like a regulatory intervention by the European Commission.

For now, the timeline for when the mobile game could return to Apple products remains unclear.

Millions of mobile players with Apple devices have been caught in the Fortnite–Apple battle unable to play and having to use other devices to enjoy the battle-royale game.